Bangladesh shifting in direction of restoring visa for Indian nationals: Diplomatic sources

Days after the Bangladesh Nationalist Celebration-led (BNP) authorities took cost after scoring a main electoral win, Bangladesh is shifting in direction of normalising visa services for Indian guests, a diplomatic supply has confirmed to The Hindu. Nevertheless, a proper notification on this regard is but to be issued by Bangladesh.

Bangladesh had halted issuing of visas in December 2025 when Indian missions confronted protest and several other incidents of stone pelting concentrating on Indian missions and visa centres had been reported in Bangladesh. Subsequently, protests had been held in India concentrating on Bangladesh’s Excessive Fee in New Delhi in addition to visa centres in West Bengal. Towards this backdrop, the Excessive Fee of Bangladesh had paused visa issuance and issued a public discover on this regard.

Visa had been one of many main areas that confronted disruption with the overthrow of the Sheikh Hasina authorities in Bangladesh in July-August 2024. As per diplomatic sources, India used to subject greater than eight thousand every day visas for Bangladesh via a number of Indian visa centres in Bangladesh earlier than the overthrow of the Hasina regime. Nevertheless, following the key disruption of July-August 2024, Indian Visa Software Centres opened sporadically due to safety threats. As per diplomatic sources, India isssued round 3,000 medical and pupil visas and on the time of the swearing-in of BNP’s Chairman Tariq Rahman who grew to become the brand new Prime Minister of Bangladesh on February 17, 2026.

The visa-related statements got here quickly after the Ministry of Exterior Affairs on Friday (February 20, 2026) expressed willingness to take the bilateral relation ahead. Official Spokesperson of the Ministry of Exterior Affairs Randhir Jaiswal had mentioned in Friday’s weekly briefing, “Constructing on the nice and cozy and historic ties between the 2 international locations, India appears ahead to additional strengthening our multifaced bilateral ties with Bangladesh.”